Sausage Potato Soup

Hello!  Happy Spring!  The temperature is supposed to fall to 28 degrees tonight here in central Illinois but spring it is.  Regardless of the official season, in my opinion, it is still soup weather. I love homemade soup. My family loves homemade soup.  So, darn it, I’m making soup. One of my family’s favorites also happens to be a very easy soup to make. In fact, when I was developing a list of family favorite recipes for The Kitchen Wench I was promptly reminded by my husband that this particular soup should be included.  The current cold weather just happened to initiate thoughts of a tummy warming Sunday supper and this soup was my first choice. Presenting….(drum roll) Sausage Potato Soup. This is a nice creamy, cozy, filling soup that pairs so very well with a crusty bread or some toast. This might be termed a pantry meal except for the sausage and onion because most of these items are probably already on your shelves.  I know that I may get some comments about the canned soup and all the sodium but I do try to use the Healthy Recipe or Low Sodium version of the canned soups. That is up to you but it can be a bit salty otherwise. This does make a big batch but the recipe can easily be halved. I just like to have leftovers and my boys always want to take some back to their own homes.

I start off with 2 lbs. of sausage.  I prefer to use the Jimmy Dean sage variety but whatever you love is what you should use.  Break the sausage up in a large skillet or large stockpot.  Finely chop 2 medium sweet or yellow onions and add to the sausage.

Cook these over medium high heat stirring occasionally until the sausage is browned and the onions are at least trans lucent if not browned.  Most recipes will say to just cook the sausage until no longer pink but I like to brown mine a bit. I think that it adds a deeper flavor and a little color.  By the way, look at this cool tool. My husband gave this to me a year or so ago and it is amazing for cooking burger and sausage. You can chop the large chunks of meat into small bits and it is made of some sort of plastic so it won’t scratch your pots and pans.  I don’t remember the brand name of this tool but he said that he got it at a dollar store. One of these days I will find out what it is and I will dedicate an entire post to singing the praises of this kitchen tool.

Ok, now back to the soup.  Drain to remove the excess grease.  Put the sausage and onions into a large stockpot.  If you used one to cook the sausage/onion mixture just put it right back in.  No point dirtying another dish. Add the chicken broth and frozen hash browns and bring to a low boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer for a maximum of 30 minutes. You just want to cook the hashbrowns until softened and no longer taste raw.  If you cook them too long they will all turn to mush. If some of them disintegrate it is a good thing because it helps to thicken the soup but you don’t want the consistency of oatmeal.  This is supposed to be a thick soup with chunks of meat and potato, albeit small chunks.

While this is simmering mix the canned soups in a medium pot over low heat until warmed through and mixed thoroughly.  Add the evaporated milk and mix well. Remove from the heat and set aside until the broth mixture is done.

When the hash browns are cooked add the soup/milk mixture and stir to combine.  Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the soup is warmed through.

Ladle into bowls and top with shredded cheddar or colby cheese.  I wish that I had shredded some cheese myself rather than using the bagged variety for this picture.  Oh well, live and learn.  I like to serve this with a nice hot crusty bread or oven toasted bread slices.  This kind of makes me long for more cold weather.   Bwahahahahahah!  Just kidding!  Soup is good no matter the weather.  Hurry up Spring!

Sausage Potato Soup

March 26, 2018

Servings: 8 - 10 good sized bowls

Difficulty: Easy

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This is a nice creamy, cozy, filling soup that pairs so very well with a crusty bread or some toast.

By: Wench Sherry

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. ground sausage (I prefer sage variety)
• 2 medium onions, diced
• 64 oz. chicken broth
• 8 - 10 cups of frozen, shredded hash browns
• 2 10-3/4 oz. cans of cream of celery soup (low sodium if possible)
• 2 10-3/4 oz. cans of cream of chicken soup (low sodium if possible)
• 2 12 oz. cans of evaporated milk
• Shredded cheese of your choice for a garnish is desired

Directions

• Step 1 Brown the sausage and diced onions in a large skillet or a stock pot.
• Step 2 Drain the sausage/onion mixture.
• Step 3 Add the chicken broth, sausage/onion mixture and frozen hash browns to a large stock pot. Bring this to a boil. Cover and reduce the heat to medium. Let this simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until the hash browns are done.
• Step 4 While the broth mixture is simmering, combine the canned soups and evaporated milk in a medium pot and stir over low heat until smooth and warmed. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Step 5 When the hash browns are done, add the canned soup mixture to the broth mixture and stir until completely combined.
• Step 6 Heat the completed soup over medium, stirring often, until it is warmed through. Be careful not to let the soup scorch.
• Step 7 Ladle into bowls and garnish with shredded cheese if desired.